FREE

Real Money

Morning Briefing: 10 Things You Should Know

U.S. stock futures point higher; GE close to buying Italian aerospace supplier Avio; Apple is denied a request from a U.S. judge for a permanent injunction against Samsung's smartphones; Oracle reports earnings.

NEW YORK ( TheStreet) -- U.S. stock futures were pointing to a higher open for Wall Street on Tuesday following reports that President Obama made a new offer to avert the so-called fiscal cliff, moving closer to certain Republican positions.

A report from Reuters said Obama made a counter-offer to Republicans that included a major change in his position on tax hikes for the rich.

The economic calendar in the U.S. Tuesday includes the third-quarter current account deficit. The report will be issued at 8:30 a.m. EST. Economists surveyed by Reuters forecast a $103.4 billion deficit compared with a deficit of $117.4 billion in the second quarter.

U.S. stocks on Monday ended with gains as investors cheered signs that Washington officials were making noteworthy progress in their efforts to try to avert the so-called fiscal cliff.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 100 points, or 0.76%, to finish Monday at 13,235.

General Electric ( GE) reportedly is close to reaching a deal to buy Italian aerospace supplier Avio for about $4 billion.

GE said Monday it expects revenue to be flat to up 5% in 2013, though CEO Jeff Immelt said worries over the so-called fiscal cliff hurt demand in the closing months of 2012, Reuters reported.

Apple ( AAPL) was denied a request from a U.S. judge for a permanent injunction against Samsung's smartphones.

Oracle ( ORCL), the software giant, is expected by analysts Tuesday to post fiscal second-quarter earnings of 61 cents a share on revenue of $9.03 billion.

Jefferies ( JEF) is expected by analysts to report fourth-quarter earnings Tuesday of 32 cents a share on revenue of $722.6 million.